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The Manufactured Housing Institute (MHI) and the Indiana MH Association informs MHProNews that in the U. S. House of Representatives, two amendments to the Fiscal Year 2017 Financial Services Appropriations bill were defeated that would have stripped language from the bill that make necessary changes to the Dodd-Frank Act in support of financing manufactured housing (MH).

The defeat of these two amendments means access to financing of MH, as laid out in the Preserving Access to Manufactured Housing measure (HR 650/S 682), remains intact, supported by MHProNews and MHLivingNews publisher L. A. “Tony” Kovach, see the download here and as noted here.

MHI has been working with Congress to pass the Preserving Access to Manufactured Housing Act (H.R.650/S.682), dealing with Appropriations Committee members, Committee leadership, co-sponsors of S.682 and state association directors to ensure the MH language is included in the appropriations bill that may be voted on before Congress adjourns.

The first amendment, defeated by a vote of 167-255, would have deleted section 637 from the measure which ensures that manufactured home retailers are not unfairly considered loan originators as long as they do not receive compensation for referrals.

The second amendment, defeated by a vote of 162-255, would have struck Section 638 of the bill that defines the thresholds for which mortgage loans are considered “high cost.” Since the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) considers costs as a percentage of a loan, smaller MH loans are suddenly thrust into the “high cost” designation, which increases lender liability. The result is many lenders have ceased making MH loans altogether, while others have stopped originating loans under $20,000, leaving those who are trying to buy or sell MH under $20,000 without financing options.

The Home Mortgage Disclosure Act reports the regulations have caused low balance loans forMH to have fallen by over ten percent, while site built home loans have risen five percent.

“This is an important milestone for millions of working families and retirees who are currently being shut out of the market for quality, unsubsidized affordable housing,” said Lesli Gooch, MHI’s Senior Vice President for Government Affairs and Chief Lobbyist.

H. R. 650, the Preserving Access to Manufactured Housing Act, passed the House in April, 2015, with bipartisan sponsorship. The companion bill in the Senate, S. 682, which also has bipartisan sponsorship, was passed by the Senate Banking Committee in June, 2015, but has yet to pass the full Senate. ##

(Image credit:Manufactured Housing Institute logo)

Article submitted by Matthew J Silver to Daily Business News-MHProNews.

With Dodd-Frank, financing and CFPB related issues routinely on the minds of manufactured housing industry professionals, The Daily Business News has learned fromAmerican Banking News the following report on the Manufactured Housing Institute (MHI), which is made available below.

“The Manufactured Housing Institute has been leading the campaign to bring more lenders into the manufactured housing market for years.”

— Lesli Gooch, Senior V.P. of Government Affairs, MHI

“How does one explain the repeated failures by MHI staff to embrace options and opportunities, or new lenders … that could lead the industry into more competitive lending and more new manufactured home sales?”

— L. A. “Tony” Kovach, elected MHI board member

Arlington, VA June 27, 2016 – The Manufactured Housing Institute, the industry’s largest trade group, has been excoriated in an unprecedented op-ed by a member of one of its boards and publisher of the industry’s leading professional trade publication.

“The known facts suggest that, for whatever reasons or motives, MHI has missed numerous opportunities to expand manufactured housing home-only and land/home lending. The impact on the factory-built housing industry in terms of lost sales could be in the billions of dollars annually,” L.A. “Tony” Kovach writes in the latest edition of MHProNews.

MHI says it represents all segments of the factory-built housing industry; its stated mission is to provide research, promotion, education and government relations programs, and by building and facilitating consensus within the industry.

But M. Mark Weiss, president and CEO for the Manufactured Housing Association for Regulatory Reform (MHARR) has repeatedly stated that MHI is tilting toward Berkshire Hathaway-owned MH lenders’ goals.

So consensus is lacking, according to the June 25 editorial, in which Kovach cites complaints from industry professionals – both members and non-members of MHI — who question the trade group’s failure to promote new lending in manufactured housing – which MHI staff asserts is a top priority for the organization.

Some, writes Kovach, “accuse MHI of de facto choking off lending with the goal of causing independent businesses to sell off to MHI member companies, or close shop.”

Others couch their criticism in terms of missed opportunities and questionable competence.

“It is MHI members who are quietly telling (MHProNews) that MHI had the opportunity to get the MLO rule changed. Those same voices tell us that achieving that success could have led to others on points and fee thresholds, the twin goals of Preserving Access.”

“If MHI’s leadership wants to move the ball down the field and score points that sell more homes, a serious series of changes must take place at MHI,” Kovach says.

Discontent with the status quo has reached the point where there are rumblings of some willing to put forth a million dollars in seed money to launch a new trade organization to promote the industry’s interests.

Kovach points out that questions and concerns about MHI’s performance center on certain staff members, not MHI itself.

“These concerns are routinely brought to us by members and third parties. So MHProNews’ spotlighting staff related issues at the organization isn’t the same as condemning the organization, of which this writer is a member.”

At a time when the demand for affordable housing is growing, Kovach laments MHI’s staff are missing the opportunity to better tell the industry’s story and thus advance its appeal to the home buying public, public officials and to attract and expand lending opportunities.

How much does the locked door on more lending options cost manufactured housing industry members every year? Trade association under fire for failing their mission, members. Closed bank vault door image credit, FlickrCreativeCommons, MHI Logo credit – MHI – both images are used under fair use guidelines for editorial purposes. Text graphic and collage credit, MHProNews.com.

Donald Trump packs the house in less than 24 hours at the CFE Arena at the University of Central Florida, touting “the movement” that Time Magazine and others in the mainstream media have taken note of in recent weeks. Photo credit, MyNews13.

The headline practically writes itself. Governor Bobby Jindal’s endorsement of Marco Rubio had little noticeable impact, as the junior U.S. Senator from Florida came in a distant third in his state, while the “Duck Dynasty” Robertson family support of Donald Trump was a true reality TV victory for Donald Trump’s presidential campaign in Louisiana in the March 5, 2016 primary contest.

Self-described Democratic socialist, U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT), took Nebraska and Kansas, with former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton winning in LA.

Trump and Senator Ted Cruz split victories on March 5th, with Cruz winning caucuses in Kansas and Maine, and Trump winning Louisiana and Kentucky, scoring an edge in the states with the larger delegate counts.

Image credit, AP.

The other headline for March 5th voting ought to be that none of the so-called establishment candidates have won a race on the Republican side. Rubio became the default go-to person once establishment favorite, Jeb Bush, bowed out after his resounding defeat in South Carolina.

Cartoon credit, Mike Lester, Washington Post.

The once-vaunted 100+ million dollar war chest of the Bush campaign and the pro-Bush super PACs failed to dent The Donald’s populist/nationalist and self-described “common sense conservatism” movement. Some argue that attacks on Trump have actually helped him with voters angry at the establishment and the political status quo. Anti-Trump super PACs have pledged to spend up to $40 million in negative TV ads, hoping to derail the candidate’s momentum with voters.

Image credit, AP.

Rubio – who came to Washington, DC as a Tea Party candidate – has won in Minnesota and is expected to do well in Puerto Rico; but polling and the upcoming map for his campaign looks grim.

If it’s a tough road for Rubio, the path for under-funded Ohio Governor John Kasich is even more problematic. Each must win their home states on March 15, but each faces stiff challenges in their own turfs and beyond.

An emboldened Ted Cruz campaign narrative not only continues to declare that his is the only campaign that has been able to consistently upend Trump, Cruz is essentially forcing a showdown with the real estate titan by opening ten well placed campaign offices in FL.

Anti-Trump talk radio show host, Erick Erickson, called Saturday morning for Rubio to join Ted Cruz’s campaign as his VP, as yet another attempt to derail Donald Trump’s otherwise apparent path to the Republican party nomination.

A Drudge Report headline says that Trump has called on Rubio to bow out. Trump has brushed off Rubio’s recent attacks – which were essentially repeated and underscored by 2012 Republican nominee Mitt Romney – as having the same impact as that of others, like former Governor Jeb Bush who tried it before. Trump called Romney a “failed candidate” who blew an election he should have won against the “failed presidency“ of Barack Obama.

Image credit, the Drudge Report, red arrow placed by MHProNews.

Voter turnout for Democratic candidates has been down so far in 2016 vs. the 2008 election cycle. By contrast, the energy created on the hotly contested Republican side has seen record voting, with increases of 50% and more in various states to date. In Massachusetts, reports say that some 20,000 Democrats left their party to vote in the Republican primary.

Those facts have bolstered the Trump campaign claims that it has brought in Democrats and Independents, and could in a general election, win in states such as deep blue New York or New Jersey, as well as swing states such as Florida, Ohio, Virginia or Pennsylvania. Trump says that Hillary’s campaign fears running against him. Indeed, Clinton has mentioned Trump directly or by inference, while generally ignoring other Republican candidates.

The Campaign and the MH Industry

CFPB regulations has made buying and selling manufactured homes under $75k more difficult, and the impact on manufactured homes with a value under $20,000 has been even more severe. This has trapped many would-be buyers in a de facto Renters Nation. Image credit, MHProNews.

Rubio has supported the manufactured housing industry’s reforms sought in the Preserving Access to Manufactured Housing Act, S 682. The Washington Post quotes Ted Cruz as saying, “Five major agencies that I would eliminate: the IRS, the Department of Commerce, the Department of Energy, the Department of Commerce and HUD.” Cruz has suggested the functions of those agencies could be sent back to states or to other federal departments, which leaves manufactured housing industry members wondering – would the HUD Code manufactured home program functions be transferred to, say, the Department of the Interior?

CFPB regulations restricts free speech rights, one of the changes sought in HR 650/S 682 MLO rule. The CFPB furthermore restricts lending – even by those who risk their own capital to make loans on manufactured homes. Learn more at the video linked here. Image credit, MHProNews.

Donald Trump was quoted by The Hill as saying,“We haveDodd–Frank and we’re in a bubble right now anyway,” Trump has called Dodd-Frank “Terrible,” and along with other Republican candidates, has said he’d repeal the legislation that created the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB).

While many questions remain on the specifics of what impact the policy positions of each of the campaigns might have on affordable housing in general, and manufactured housing in particular, there is little doubt that the Democratic front runner’s greatest primary challenge is the FBI and the DOJ, while the upcoming math and momentum strongly favors Donald Trump. ##

(Image credit sources are as noted by each image.)

L. A. ‘Tony’ Kovach is the publisher of MHProNews.com and MHLivingNews.com.

Millions of manufactured home MH owners and thousands of MH professionals are being adversely impacted by the current state of CFPB regulations. Yet the fog created by interest groups that oppose changes to Dodd-Frank or the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) current policies have slowed the progress in the Senate of S 682, dubbed Preserving Access to Manufactured Housing Act.

The House version of the same bill, HR 650, passed last spring with bi-partisan support.

A source at CFPB indicates they are considering a response to the video and the issues it raises.

The Manufactured Housing Institute (MHI), has not yet made a statement on the subject, which was produced independent of their input, but included insights from MHI members, including Sam Landy, President and CEO of UMH Properties, who is featured in the video speaking about the impact of the current regulations on home shoppers, MH owners and MH professionals.

MH state associations and industry pros have provided positive feedback in the video, and have forwarded the link onto members, colleagues and others. “It’s a useful tool in advocacy on the policy side with Congress and the CFPB,” one email to MHProNews said, with others commenting “Great video!” or “This is well done,” etc.

MHLivingNews publisher L. A. ‘Tony’ Kovach has said this could be the first of other such videos that spotlight issues impacting manufactured housing home owners and professionals.

“We have manufactured home owners and professionals who state on camera that they want to see the unintended consequences of Dodd-Frank changed, either by the CFPB making the needed adjustments, or through enactment by the Congress of the Preserving Access to Manufactured Housing Act,” Kovach told the Daily Business News.

“The United States faces an affordable housing crisis, and manufactured homes serve as a vital solution for folks of modest means,” Secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Julian Castro states in this video.

That fix for the affordable housing crisis, Kovach says, doesn’t cost the taxpayers money. By using manufactured homes and removing artificial barriers caused by mistaken regulatory policies, that can save taxpayers money because some renters will opt for ownership or possibly subsidized housing. “It will take one or more videos like this to cut through the noise and fog that special interest groups have created to get S 682 through the Senate and Preserving Access to Manufactured Housing passed into law.”

Kovach suggested the best link to share the video with Congressional staff and others is the one here, on MHLivingNews, so that those who don’t yet understand all the benefits and modern realities of manufactured housing can go beyond the video and learn even more. ##

The Manufactured Housing Institute (MHI) informs MHProNews that congressional leaders have announced a $1.1 trillion omnibus appropriations spending bill to keep the government funded through fiscal 2016, but none of the Dodd-Frank Act reforms were included.

Rep. Stephen Fincher (R-TN), the sponsor of the Preserving Access to Manufactured Housing Act in the House, which passed in April, said, “While I am disappointed my bill to improve access to manufactured housing was not included in the omnibus, I will continue to do everything possible to move this bill forward. Congress should constantly fight to give families opportunities – not take them away. My bill is for the millions of Americans who rely on manufactured housing but have been seriously harmed by crushing federal regulations.”

Although reforms to the Dodd-Frank Act were not included in the appropriations measure, MHI reminds us of the groundwork laid and the support gained in the first session of the 114th Congress: the stand-alone H. R. 650 passed the House with bipartisan support; Banking Committee Chairman Sen. Richard Shelby (R-AL) included the Senate companion bill, S 682, into the Financial Regulatory Improvement Act (S 1484) that the committee passed in May; and the language was part of the Financial Services and General Government Appropriations Act passed by the Senate Appropriations Committee in July. Also, the language was included by House and Senate negotiators on the list of provisions attached to the omnibus appropriations measure if Dodd-Frank Act reforms were to be included.

The progress made by the manufactured home industry in trying to correct the ills that emanated from the Dodd-Frank Act is in no small way attributable to the bipartisan support received from Senators Donnelly (D-IN), Toomey (R-PA), Cotton (R-AR), and Manchin (E-WV), and Representatives Fincher (R-TN), Sewell (D-AL), Barr (R-KY) and Sinema (D-AZ).

Noting MHI members should congratulate themselves on the progress that has been made, MHI Chairman Tim Williams said, “We have just completed the first year of a two-year Congress. In spite of the headwinds from DC-based consumer groups, we have a bipartisan bill and strong support from key leaders in Congress. MHI will continue its strong advocacy efforts into next year and coordinate with its members to effectively press for adoption of these pro-consumer provisions.” ##

(Photo credit: mbaa.org-U. S. Capitol)

Article submitted by Matthew J. Silver to Daily Business News-MHProNews.

5 years after its passage, Dodd-Frank remains one of the hotly contested legacies of the Obama Administration. Supporters of the law believe that it provides important consumer protections. Others point to facts suggesting CFPB over-reach with respect to manufactured housing chattel – or personal property, “home-only loans” – are creating a “Renters Nation.”

Into the hotly contested debate over The Preserving Access to Manufactured Housing Act– HR 650 and S 682 – is a newly released Inside MH video interview with attorney Marty Lavin.

Lavin’s background includes taking consumer advocacy positions, while maintaining his status as an expert on manufactured home finance.

In this in depth interview, Lavin is asked about such hot-button topics as:

Is Manufactured Home Lending Predatory?

Is Fraud and Abuse of Customers Prevalent in MH Retail Today?

What is the impact of CFPB regulations on the values of an estimated 4 million manufactured home owners living in 1.7 million MHs in the U.S.?

What is the impact of the CFPB’s MLO rule on manufactured home shoppers and sellers?

The PBS Newshouris said to be ‘holding’ video interviews of its own, that informed sources suggest to MHProNews will be slanted against the MH industry’s positions.

Sources have advised the Daily Business News that the PBS interviews by Stephen Fee could be released 10 days before any Senate floor debate. While MH lending consultant Dick Ernst was asked to represent the views of the Manufactured Housing Institute (MHI), sources suggest that the Gwen Ifill interview about OZY Media’s take on manufactured housing could be an important clue as to how those reports will be slanted.

Manufactured home personal property financing – which Fee and others in the media mislabel as ‘mobile home loans’ – will likely come to the forefront, as a Senate vote on a bill that includes the language of S 682 is expected to come up for a vote this fall. Fee has not yet responded to our contact for comments.

PBS’ MH lending focused videos, along with other media reports expected in the run-up to the fall Sentate debate and vote, could make this exclusive Inside MH video interview with Marty Lavin an important part of the discussion, as it takes an in-depth look at the MH loan issue.

While the Corporation for Enterprise Development’s (CFED) Doug Ryan nominally supports manufactured homes (MH) as affordable housing for low income consumers, his response to The Hill about Rep. Steve Fincher’s call to ease the regulatory burdens on prospective purchasers of MH demonstrably misses the mark. As MHProNews and MHLivingNews publisher L. A. “Tony” Kovach points out in The Hill Congressional Blog today, Ryan said recently that longtime MH finance expert Dick Ernst knows more about MH financing. “Ryan said that weeks after Ernst and a non-Berkshire-Hathaway MH lender privately walked him through the realities of MH financing,” notes Kovach.

Congressman Fincher pointed out that payments on an MH personal property loan are typically less than rent on an apartment or house. Kovach says, “The reason for higher rates on MH is simple business math. The cost to originate a $35,000 loan is similar to the cost of originating a $350,000 loan. Since there are no federal guarantees for conventional MH lending, no real secondary market and thus no risk to tax payers – naturally the rates, points and fees for an MH lender need to be higher to have a chance to profit.” Unlike the traditional mortgage market, interest rates are not kept artificially low via federal supports of the GSEs, FHA or VA loans.

Current CFPB regulations have caused a number of smaller and low rate lenders, as well as huge U S. Bank, to leave the MH finance market because of regulatory burdens. Why aren’t lenders pouring into the market if it was so profitable (i.e. “predatory”)?

While millions of MH loans have been made over the years, consumer complaints reported by the CFPB do not show MH lenders ranking high in originating or servicing. Even when MH consumers are forced by CFPB regulations to turn to 36 percent interest rate payday-style loans, we know of real world examples of their payments on an inexpensive home still being less than rent. So why shut the door on lenders making smaller loans and give a break to consumers on interest charges?

Kovach says, “That’s all good for homeowners, consumers and business. That’s good public policy. The Senate should promptly pass the bill, and/or CFPB should change their policies on MH lending ASAP.” MH associations are encouraging industry members to read and share the article with their Senators and staffs, because it documents and refutes opposition arguments, point by point. The link to the full blog post on the Hill is here.##

Article submitted by Matthew J. Silver to Daily Business News-MHProNews.

The bill styled Preserving Access to Manufactured Housing Act 2015 (HR 650) was introduced by Rep. Stephen L. Fincher, (R-TN) on February 2, 2015. Since then, support for the bill has been building.

At the bill’s introduction, Congressman Fincher said: “Mr. Speaker, I rise today to discuss my bill, the Preserving Access to Manufactured Housing Act. My legislation makes two important changes to regulations that could affect the accessibility of financing options for purchasers of manufactured homes.”

The Tennessee congressman continued, “Manufactured housing serves as a valuable, affordable housing option for American families all across our nation. Unfortunately, due to CFPB mortgage regulations that do not reflect the unique nature of the manufactured home sales process, access to financing for manufactured homes is in serious jeopardy. My bill would modify the definition of high-cost loans so that manufactured housing loans are not unfairly swept under the high-cost loan designation simply due to their size.”

Rep. Fincher also pointed out that the Act will clarify the fact that manufactured housing retailers not engaged in financing loans should not be considered mortgage loan originators for purposes of heightened regulation and limitation on activity under the SAFE Act.

He urged his colleagues in the House (and Senate) to support him in passing the Preserving Access to Manufactured Housing Act, “in order to ensure continued availability of this affordable housing option.”

The Manufactured Housing Institute’s Senior Vice President of Government Affairs, Dr. Lesli Gooch, said there is real momentum building for this piece of legislation. In support of that claim, the facts below provided by the Manufactured Housing Institute (MHI) show that support is increasing:

1,392 emails have been sent to Capitol Hill, covering 245 congressional districts.

20 Members of Congress received ten (10) or more emails expressing support for HR 650.

56% of U.S. House members received at least one (1) email urging support of this bill.

The states of Delaware, Kansas, Kentucky, Mississippi, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Tennessee, Vermont, and Wisconsin had at least one (1) email from each house district in that respective state.

Rick Robinson, General Counsel and Sr. VP State & Regulatory Affairs for MHI said, “The initial response by manufactured housing professionals to flood the Hill with emails in support of HR 650 has been tremendous. In part, it is because of how easy we’ve made it to contact Members of Congress. If you have time to make four quick clicks on your computer, you have time to let your Representative know your support.”

However, Robinson explained that it’s more than just the ease of operation. He said that people in the industry are anxious to tell their story and explain how these rules are negatively impacting their ability to deliver quality and affordable housing to consumers.

So, if you have not yet expressed your support to your congressional representative, please do so today.

Barry Noffsinger, Sales and Marketing Manager, CU Factory Built Lending, summed up the importance of this action, explaining that, “Without hearing from their constituents, legislators do not know what is important to them. Remember, your recommendation may be the deciding factor in a congressional member’s decision to vote for or against a bill.”

To contact your Congressman in just a few fast keystrokes, please click here. Or call the Capitol switchboard at (202) 224-3121. Just give your postcode and the switchboard will connect you to your Congressman’s office. ##